You probably thought there wasn’t much difference between the cloud services, Google Drive and Google One, the offerings from Google. But this is far from the truth. When you delve deep into Google One vs Google Drive, you will find that, like their similarities, there are differences too. For example, while Google Drive offers free storage, Google One is paid additional storage.
The service you choose must be in sync with your data storage requirements. There is no use paying for a standard plan if all you have got to store are a few personal files. This is where the free cloud storage space of Google Drive comes as a boon. We have detailed Google Drive vs Google One to help you choose. If you own an Apple device, you can also consider iCloud by comparing iCloud vs. Google Drive.
The Difference Between Google One And Google Drive
Google’s default storage service, Google Drive, is available to anyone with a Google account. It comes with 15 GB of free storage, which can be used to store and organize all your music, photos, and documents, and supports all file formats. Its ability to let users collaborate and share files is the main highlight that draws customers. Google One encompasses all the paid plans you can subscribe to if you want more storage. It was started as a replacement for Paid Google Drive Storage.
Introduced in 2018, Google One subscription plans extend the storage to Gmail, Google Drive, and Google Photos. And it comes with some extra perks that are not available in Google Drive. Note that these benefits are different for different countries. In addition, various plans are available for users, which they can select depending on their needs. When they pay for a plan, the accessible storage space changes to 100 GB or more based on the plan.
Both Google Drive and Google One can be accessed through their browser versions and dedicated apps. To access the services, go to Google Drive and Google One websites.
Google One Vs Google Drive – Let’s Understand it better
There are quite a few factors to consider when thinking about Google One vs Google Drive. Even though both services are born out of Google, you will find some differences and added advantages in one or the other. Keep reading to unearth them.
1. Features
Cloud users are always looking out for what extra features they can avail of from the services. Thankfully, both Google One and Google Drive offer the best features with additional benefits that make them stand apart from the hundreds of services available. Let us see how Google One vs Google Drive explains their features.
Google One
- The regular search in Google One is powered by artificial intelligence, which enables faster file search
- It is a monthly or annual subscription service, first started for users in the US. Now, the service is available in 150 countries, but some of the features are still restricted to certain places
- Its capability extends to Google Photos and Gmail
- Google One offers some extra benefits for its members, including up to 10% cashback on Google Store purchases, Google Play credits, Google expert support, direct access to VPN, and additional editing features in Google Photos
- Another premium feature available for Google One members is the family plan at no extra cost. The plan lets you divide your storage quota with additional family members (up to 5) by creating a family group by navigating to the Manage Family Group in the app.
Google Drive
- Google Drive supports AI-assisted search technology, making it easy to find the right file at the right time
- The service is available worldwide, as anyone who has a Google account has access to Google Drive
- Unlike Google One, there are no exclusive benefits for the drive users
What we think:
Both platforms have amazing features, but Google One’s additional features look more appealing.
2. Storage and Pricing
Fortunately for the billions of Google users, they get 15 GB of free storage space on Google cloud storage which is enormous for personal file storage. You can opt for a Google One plan for additional storage. Comparing Google One Vs Google Drive gives you an idea of how one can be more beneficial for you from the cost perspective.
Google One
Google One is unavailable for Google Workspace Business or Enterprise Editions. Personal account holders can have a Google One consumer subscription plan for extra storage and extra member benefits. You can share the plan with a maximum of five family members at no additional cost
Here are the pricing plans.
- Free: 15 GB of storage per user
- Basic plan: $1.99/month (100 GB)
- Standard plan: $2.99/month (200 GB)
- Premium plan: $9.99/month (2 TB)
Google One storage
Google Drive
As mentioned, Google Drive offers free 15 GB of storage per person. If you have a business account, you can subscribe to Google Workspace, which includes Drive storage allotment.
Here are the basic pricing and plan options for business users.
- Business Starter: $6 per user per month
- Business Standard: $12 per user per month
- Business Plus: $18 per user per month
- Enterprise: Based on the requirement
Google Drive storage
What we think:
Google Drive’s free storage is a very good option, but for additional storage space, Google One is not a bad option.
3. Security
As a cloud provider, it is Google’s responsibility to follow strict security protocols to keep the user applications and data safe. That said, users must also do their part by having strong passwords for their Google accounts to avoid security breaches. Here, we will discuss Google One vs Google Drive regarding their security features. Even though the services don’t provide zero-knowledge encryption, they still offer advanced security features.
Google Drive
- Google Drive offers two types of encryption standards to protect user data
- When the data is stored in the data center, it is encrypted using AES 128-bit encryption as well as AES 256-bit encryption protocol
- While data is on the move during sharing, SSL/TLS 256-bit encryption is used, which is an advanced encryption standard
- Users have the privilege of granting restricted permissions when they share files
- Google Drive supports two-factor authentication
- It safeguards your data from software failure, natural disasters, and the like
Google One
- Google One provides secure access to your files using strong encryption methods like Google Drive
- With the built-in VPN offered by Google One, users don’t have to be concerned about security issues
- Users who have subscribed to 2 TB or a higher plan can enable VPN for extra online protection.
What we think:
Google Drive and Google One are excellent in their advanced encryption protocols.
4. Integration
Businesses know that better integration between systems translates to better flexibility and scalability. Real-time sharing is made possible by integration tools and technologies. Even though there isn’t much to elaborate on Google One vs Google Drive, we can see how the services offer integration.
Google Drive
- Google Drive offers extensive third-party app integrations with many applications used regularly, like Slack, CloudConvert, and many others
- It has native integration with Google Workspace tools like Google Docs, Sheets, Google Calendar, and others that come with collaborative features
- It lets you backup data from your mobile devices, be it iOS or Android devices, using the Google Drive mobile app
- You can download Drive for Desktop if you want automatic syncing of the cloud data on your computer
Google One
- Google One integrates easily with Google Docs, Sheets, and other Google products
- You can access Google One using your web browser or download the Google One app for desktop
- The Google One app for your iOS or Android phone lets you do automatic phone backup to have all your videos, original quality photos and other data backed up automatically.
What we think:
The cloud storage services offer seamless integration with Google products and tools like Google Sheets, and also with third-party apps.
5. Customer support
Needless to say, both the services being from Google, offer extensive customer support. Users are promised 24/7 support for all their queries or issues regarding space, storage plans, or any others. But the response and action time can vary. So, here is a discussion on Google One Vs Google Drive based on customer support.
Google Drive
- Google Drive supports call, email, and live chat
- Users can access thousands of tutorials, articles, and videos explaining the service
- More support professionals are always on duty to cater to customer requirements, and they are undoubtedly the best at their jobs
- Paid users are given preference over the free users
- You can upgrade the level of support without changing the present subscription plan
Google One
- Google One supports call, email, and live chat
- The number of articles and videos is comparatively lesser as it is a newer service
- There is no option to upgrade the support level without changing the current subscription plan.
What we think:
Being a recent addition, Google One is one step behind when customer support is considered.
Final Thoughts
If you are happy with the free storage provided by Google Drive, you can stick to the service. However, a thorough understanding of Google One vs Google Drive will help you decide if you are ready to get the paid Google One plan to welcome home more benefits. Let us tell you that both cloud storage platforms give you the best user experience.
Google One and Google Drive perform equally when it comes to backing up files, file sharing, and security, but the extra member benefits that are a part of Google One are noteworthy. Choosing one over the other depends on the users who can consider their requirements.